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YABQOLA - Yet Another Blender Quality of Life Extension

Version: 1.5.0 • Requires: Blender 5.0+

YABQOLA is a modular collection of animation and presentation utilities for Blender, created by Xnom3d. It ships 34 tools across animation timing, keyframe editing, scene setup, material inspection, rendering, and presentation workflows — all accessible from the Graph Editor, Dope Sheet, or 3D Viewport sidebars under the YABQOLA tab.

Every feature can be individually shown or hidden from the add-on preferences so the UI stays lean for your workflow.


Features at a Glance

Animation & Timing

Tool What it does
Noise Randomizer Randomize phase, offset, strength, and scale across noise F-Curve modifiers
Keyframe Offset Batch-shift keyframes by frames with uniform, selection-order, or name cascading
Stagger Timing Cascade offsets across objects or pose bones with easing curves and hierarchy awareness
Ease Presets One-click interpolation presets (ease in/out, linear, constant) with handle adjustment
Motion Hold Duplicate keys to create stepped or interpolated holds
Overshoot & Settle Add overshoot peaks and bounce-settle after keyframes
Time Stretch Retime keyframes around a pivot with configurable scale factor
Cycle Setup Apply repeat, ping-pong, or offset repeat modifiers with before/after control
Loop Animation Match first/last keys or blend boundaries for seamless loops
Snap Keyframes Snap keys to nearest frame, on twos/threes, or custom intervals
Scale Keyframe Values Scale values around cursor, average, zero, or custom pivot
Select by Keyframe Type Batch-select keyframes by type (breakdown, extreme, jitter, etc.)

Scene & Objects

Tool What it does
Quick Flip Smart mirror for poses and objects with per-axis control and collection scope
Scene Cleanup Identify and remove invisible/unused objects with safeguards for cameras and lights
Turntable Generator One-click rotating camera orbit around the selection with configurable axis and duration
Quick Backdrop Spawn a flat or studio-sweep backdrop behind the subject, positioned relative to camera

Camera & Framing

Tool What it does
Auto Framing Automatically position the camera to frame the selection with padding and direction presets
Camera Snapshots Save, recall, and delete named camera transforms and lens settings
Reference Camera Matcher Sync sensor size, focal length, and resolution to match a reference photograph
Focus Helper (DOF) Quick depth-of-field setup with f-stop presets and object-tracking focus

Lighting & Environment

Tool What it does
Lighting Presets Place studio lighting rigs (three-point, Rembrandt, butterfly, rim, split) around the subject
Background Swap Toggle between transparent, solid color, gradient, or environment backgrounds
Color Temperature Add a Blackbody node to the world shader with presets from 1900K to 10000K
Viewport HDRI Rotation Rotate the viewport HDRI environment without touching world settings

Materials & Inspection

Tool What it does
Material Override Temporarily replace all materials with clay, normal-map, wireframe, or checker for form checking
Silhouette Check Toggle viewport into flat silhouette, solid, or matcap shading for readability checks
Expression Mixer Shape key slider panel with save/recall named expression presets
Physics Snapshot Bake cloth/softbody simulation at the current frame as a shape key

Rendering & Output

Tool What it does
Render Presets One-click Cycles/Eevee presets for preview, playblast, draft, final, and clay renders
Output Size Presets Quick resolution presets: Instagram, Twitter/X, 4K wallpaper, phone, 2K, A4 print
Compositor Quick Setup One-click bloom, vignette, and color grading via compositor nodes
Multi-Angle Batch Render Render all camera snapshots in sequence with automatic naming
Watermark Overlay Add a positioned, scaled watermark image to renders via the compositor
Pose Snapshots Save, recall, and compare armature poses stored as JSON on the armature

Installation

Blender 5.0+ (Extensions)

  1. Download the latest .zip from the Releases page.
  2. In Blender, open Edit > Preferences > Extensions.
  3. Click Install from Disk, select the zip, and enable YABQOLA.
  4. Restart Blender if prompted.

Building from Source

python scripts/package_extension.py --force

The packaged zip appears in ./dist/. Use --suffix nightly for development builds.


Getting Started

  1. Open the Graph Editor, Dope Sheet, or 3D Viewport.
  2. Press N to reveal the sidebar and select the YABQOLA tab.
  3. Each feature has its own collapsible panel. Settings persist per scene.
  4. Toggle feature visibility in Edit > Preferences > Extensions > YABQOLA.

Tool Guide

Noise Randomizer

Randomize noise F-Curve modifiers across selected curves.

  • Set min/max ranges for Phase, Offset, Strength, and Scale.
  • Enable Create Missing to auto-add noise modifiers where absent.
  • Set a Seed for reproducible results (0 = system entropy).
  • Click Randomize Noise to apply.

Keyframe Offset

Batch-shift keyframes in time.

  • Set a Frame Offset value (positive = forward, negative = backward).
  • Choose Offset Mode: Uniform (all the same), Selection Order (cascading), or Name (alphabetical cascade).
  • Enable Only Selected Keys to leave unselected keys in place.

Stagger Timing

Create natural overlap by cascading offsets across multiple objects or bones.

  • Step mode: fixed frame delta per object. Spread mode: total frame range divided evenly.
  • Easing: Linear, Ease In, Ease Out, Ease In-Out, or Random.
  • Order: Selection, Hierarchy (parent-child), Timeline (earliest key), or Name.
  • Works with pose bones and shape key animations.

Ease Presets

Apply interpolation presets to selected keyframes.

  • Choose from Ease In, Ease Out, Ease In-Out, Linear, or Constant.
  • Enable Adjust Handles to update bezier handles alongside interpolation mode.
  • Filter by selected curves, selected keys, and shape key curves.

Motion Hold

Create hold frames by duplicating keyframes.

  • Set Hold Length (frames between duplicated keys).
  • Choose hold Interpolation: Constant (stepped), Linear, or Bezier.
  • Inherit Handles preserves outgoing handle shape on bezier keys.

Overshoot & Settle

Add secondary motion overshoot after keyframes.

  • Overshoot Amount: fraction of incoming motion to overshoot.
  • Overshoot Frames / Settle Frames: timing of the peak and settle.
  • Bounces: 1 = single overshoot, 2+ = oscillating settle. Decay controls diminishment.

Time Stretch

Retime keyframes by scaling in time.

  • Stretch Factor: >1 = slower, <1 = faster.
  • Pivot: Playhead, First Key, Last Key, or Center of range.

Cycle Setup

Apply F-Curve modifier cycles.

  • Cycle Mode: Repeat, Ping-Pong (mirror), or Offset Repeat.
  • Toggle Cycle Before / Cycle After independently.
  • Remove clears cycle modifiers from targeted curves.

Loop Animation

Make animation curves seamlessly loop.

  • Match First: copies the first key's value to the end.
  • Match Last: copies the last key's value to the start.
  • Blend: averages boundary keyframes over a configurable number of frames.

Snap Keyframes

Snap keyframes to clean frame boundaries.

  • Nearest Frame, On Twos, On Threes, or custom Interval.
  • Remove Duplicates cleans up keys that land on the same frame after snapping.

Scale Keyframe Values

Scale keyframe values around a pivot.

  • Scale Factor: multiplier (1.0 = no change).
  • Pivot: Current Frame, Average, Zero, or Custom value.

Select by Keyframe Type

Batch-select keyframes by their type marker.

  • Choose: Keyframe, Breakdown, Moving Hold, Extreme, Jitter, or Generated.
  • Deselect Others clears non-matching keys.

Quick Flip

Mirror poses and object transforms.

  • Scope: Selection or Collection (with sub-collections and hierarchy options).
  • Axis: X, Y, or Z.
  • Smart Flip handles mixed armature + object selections automatically.

Scene Cleanup

Remove invisible or unused objects.

  • Configure what counts as "invisible" (viewport visibility, render visibility).
  • Protect lights, cameras, active camera, and linked data.
  • Preview (dry run) lists candidates before Delete removes them.

Render Presets

Quick render configuration presets.

  • Preview, Playblast, Still Draft, Still Final, Still Clay, Final.
  • Optionally adjust output settings and sample counts.

Reference Camera Matcher

Match Blender's camera to a real-world reference photograph.

  • Load a reference image to set render resolution automatically.
  • Select a Sensor Preset (Full Frame, APS-C, MFT, Super35, 1", Phone) or enter custom dimensions.
  • Match by 35mm-equivalent focal length, horizontal FOV, vertical FOV, or direct lens value.
  • Optionally overlay the reference image as a camera background.

Auto Framing

Automatically frame the selection in camera view.

  • Padding: extra margin around the subject (0 = tight, 1 = double margin).
  • Direction: Current, Front, Side, 3/4 View, or High Angle.

Camera Snapshots

Save and recall named camera positions.

  • Save Snapshot: stores location, rotation, and lens. Overwrites if the name already exists.
  • Recall: restores a saved snapshot. Delete: removes it.

Focus Helper (DOF)

Quick depth-of-field setup.

  • Focus Mode: fixed Distance to selection or Track Object (live follow).
  • F-Stop Presets: f/1.4 through f/16 for shallow to deep focus.
  • Clear DOF removes depth of field settings.

Lighting Presets

Place studio lighting rigs around the active object.

  • Presets: Three Point, Rembrandt, Butterfly, Rim/Edge, Split.
  • Adjust base Intensity (other lights scale relative to the key).
  • Replace Existing removes previous YABQOLA lights before adding new ones.
  • Clear Studio Lights removes all YABQOLA-created lights.

Background Swap

Switch render background modes.

  • Transparent: sets film_transparent.
  • Solid Color: creates a Background shader node with a chosen color.
  • Gradient: vertical gradient via Texture Coordinate + ColorRamp nodes.
  • Environment: clears YABQOLA nodes and uses existing world shading.

Color Temperature

Adjust world lighting color temperature.

  • Presets: Candlelight (1900K), Warm (3200K), Neutral (5500K), Daylight (6500K), Cool (8000K), Overcast (10000K), or Custom.
  • Strength: controls the mix intensity of the Blackbody node.

Viewport HDRI Rotation

Rotate the viewport environment HDRI independently of world settings.

  • Set a Rotation angle (0-360 degrees) and apply.

Material Override

Temporarily replace all materials for form checking.

  • Clay: neutral diffuse. Normal Map: normal direction vis. Wireframe: wire overlay. Checker: UV check pattern.
  • Original materials are saved as JSON and restored when toggled off.

Silhouette Check

Toggle viewport into flat shading for readability.

  • Silhouette: black on white. Flat Color: grey on dark. Matcap: matcap shading.
  • Previous viewport settings are saved and restored on toggle-off.

Expression Mixer

Shape key slider panel with expression presets.

  • Draws live sliders for all shape keys on the active mesh.
  • Reset All zeros every shape key.
  • Save Expression / Recall / Delete manages named expression presets (stored as JSON on the scene).

Physics Snapshot

Capture cloth or softbody simulation as a shape key.

  • Select mesh objects with physics modifiers, then Capture Snapshot.
  • Uses the evaluated depsgraph to read deformed vertex positions.
  • Optionally Remove Modifier after baking.

Turntable Generator

Create a rotating camera orbit.

  • Duration: frames for a full 360-degree rotation (default 120).
  • Axis: X, Y, or Z rotation.
  • Height Offset: vertical shift for the pivot point.
  • Remove Turntable unparents the camera and deletes the pivot.

Quick Backdrop

Spawn a backdrop behind the subject.

  • Flat Plane or Studio Sweep (curved cyclorama shape).
  • Set Color and Scale.
  • Backdrop is positioned and oriented relative to the active camera.

Output Size Presets

Quick resolution presets for common output formats.

  • Instagram Square (1080x1080), Instagram Portrait (1080x1350), Twitter/X (1600x900), 4K Wallpaper (3840x2160), Phone Wallpaper (1080x1920), 2K Landscape (2560x1440), A4 Print 300dpi (2480x3508).
  • Sets resolution and forces 100% scale.

Compositor Quick Setup

One-click compositor effects.

  • Bloom: Fog Glow glare node with configurable threshold.
  • Vignette: ellipse mask with blur and multiply.
  • Color Grading: Lift/Gamma/Gain color balance.
  • Clear Effects removes all YABQOLA compositor nodes and reconnects the chain.

Multi-Angle Batch Render

Render all saved camera snapshots in one go.

  • Requires at least one camera snapshot saved.
  • Set the Output Path (base directory; snapshot names are appended).
  • Click Render All to iterate through every snapshot.

Watermark Overlay

Add a watermark image to renders via the compositor.

  • Set the Image path, then choose Position (four corners or center).
  • Adjust Scale (relative to render size) and Opacity.
  • Clear Watermark removes all watermark compositor nodes.

Pose Snapshots

Save and compare armature poses.

  • Select an armature, name the pose, and Save Pose.
  • Recall applies a saved pose. Delete removes it.
  • Stored as JSON on the armature object.

Automated Releases

Pushing a v* tag (e.g., v1.5.0) triggers the GitHub Actions release workflow. The tag version must match the version in blender_manifest.toml. You can also run the workflow manually from the Actions tab.

# Local packaging
python scripts/package_extension.py --force

# With build suffix
python scripts/package_extension.py --suffix nightly

Contributing

  1. Fork the repository and create a feature branch.
  2. Follow Blender's Python style (PEP 8) and keep modules self-contained.
  3. Each feature needs: operator in operators/, properties in properties.py, toggle in preferences.py, UI in ui/panels.py, and module entry in __init__.py.
  4. Run the add-on locally to verify your changes.
  5. Submit a pull request describing the motivation and testing performed.

Bug reports, UX feedback, and documentation updates are equally welcome.


License

YABQOLA is distributed under the GPL-3.0-or-later license. See blender_manifest.toml for authoritative metadata.


Credits

  • Author: Xnom3d
  • Contributors: Add your name here via pull request!

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YABQOLA: Yet Another Blender Quality of Life Add-on

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